Valve



1940 A. V. D. wlLLeoos 2,136,791

' VALVE Filed June 12, 1936 I 48 I INVENTOR.

/00 98 6 JQJDIFBLHVZZ Wily/1175 M f M A TTORNEY Patented Jan. 9, 1940 PATENT OFFICE VALVE Andrew v. n. Willgoos, West nmmra, Conn.,

assignor to United Aircraft Corporation, East Hartford, Conn, a corporation of Delaware Application June 12 1936, Serial No. 84,905

. 6 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in valves, and has particular reference to a valve embodying an automatic control feature which renders the valve inefiective to open a fluid conduit line whenever the pressure of the fluid in the line is below a predetermined minimum value.

An objectof the invention resides in the provision of a valve of the character described in combination with an engine and a hydraulically controlled propeller for preventing the flow of engine oil to the propeller whenever the oil pressure is below a predetermined value.

.Other objects and advantages will be more particularly pointed out hereinafter or will become portion of an engine and a propeller driven thereby with a .valve constructed according to the idea of this invention applied in position to control the oil passage between the engine oil pump and the propeller, certain portions being broken away and shown in section to better illustrate the construction thereof;

Fig. 2 is a vertical transverse section on an enlarged scale of a suitable valve constructed according to the ideaof this invention; and

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view on the line 3--3 of Fig. 2 looking in the direction "of the arrows.

Referring to the illustrated form of the invention shown in the accompanying drawing, the

numeral generally indicates a suitable propeller driving engine having a nose piece l2 in front of which the propeller I4 is rotatably mounted upon the propeller shaft |6.. The propeller is provided with rotatably adjustable blades I8 mounted at their root or base ends in a hub barrel member so that the blades may be rotated about their longitudinal axes-to control the pitch angle of the blades. The blades are urged to rotate in one direction by suitable means, such as the centrifugally actuated Weights 22, andare urged to rotate in the opposite direction by the hydraulic mechanism 24, the hydraulic mechanism being effective to overcome the action of the weights 22 .and rotate the propeller blades against the action of the weights. I

Suitable fluid, such as engine lubricating oil, is supplied to the hydraulic mechanism .24 from a source of pressure, such as an engine oil pump (not illustrated) through suitable channels, including a portion of the tubular propeller shaft l6, asindicated at 26. The oil is led to the interior of the propeller shaft through a suitable oil collector ring 28 from a channel 30 which communicates with a channel 32 leading from the outlet side of the manually operable valve, generally indicated at 34. Oil is led from the pump to the inlet side of the valve 34 through a suitable channel 36, and is led from the propeller back to the engine through a suitable drain channel when the valve 34 is manually turned to close the channels 12 and 90. The purpose of the valve 34 is to control the supply of oil to thehydraulic mechanism 24 so that the pitch angle of the propeller blades l8 may be rendered subject to manual control and so that the propeller may be maintained in either its positive high or its low pitch condition at the will of the operator.

In the illustrative form of the invention shown, the valve 34 constitutes the sole control means regulating the supply of oil to the propeller controlling mechanism, but it is within the scopeof the invention to provide such a valve in cbmbi; nation with a constant speed governor, certain forms of which are well known. to the art, to render the governor ineiIective to control the propeller pitch and maintain the propeller pitch at a desired setting, which may be. either the positive high or low pitch or some intermediate pitch, as determined by the will of the operator of the vehicle. I

It has been found that when oil is supplied to the propeller controlling mechanism, especially in case of comparatively large installations, a considerable amount of oil is withdrawn from the engine lubricating system to operate the propeller controlling mechanism. This is. especially true when the engine is first started up and the propeller controlling mechanism is empty or nearly empty. In this connection, it has been found that in cases where oil may be supplied freely to the propeller immediately after starting the engine, a condition involving serious hazards to engine operation may exist, owing to the fact that the engine lubricating system may berobbed of. oil

before sufllcient oil for adequate lubrication has v been supplied to all of the working parts of the' engine. Such a condition prolongs the period during which certain working parts of the engine must operate with inadequate lubrication, and tends to produce serious frictional effects which result in rapid deterioration of theengine and, in some cases, in complete engine failure. As explained above, an object of this invention is to provide a valve embodying means which will prevent such a condition occurring by the propeller controlling mechanism robbing the engine lubricating system of needed lubricating oil before the. oil in the'lubricating system reaches a pressure sufficient to provide adequate lubrication to all of the working parts of'the engine.

The valve 34 is mounted upon a boss or pad 88 provided for that purpose on the nose piece I 2, or some other suitable portion of the engine, and is provided with an inlet channel 48 and an outlet channel 42 which communicate with the oil channels 38 and 32 respectively. The channels 48 and 42 are provided in the wall of a fixed valve member 44, bolted or otherwise suitably secured to the pad- 38, and the valve member is provided interiorly thereof with a cylindrical aperture 46 within which is disposed a sleeve member, generally indicated at 48. The sleeve member is provided with a cylindrical well 58 which receives and has a bearing fit with the rotatable valve plug 52. At its upperend, the sleeve member is provided with an outwardly extending flange portion 54 which overlies the upper end of the fixed valve member 44 and is secured to the fixed valve member by suitable means, such as the screws 58'. Preferably, a gasket 58 is disposed between the adjacent surfaces of the flange portion 54 of the sleeve member 48 and the upper end of the fixed valve member 44 to provide a fluid tight seal between the sleeve member and the fixed valve member. Concentric with the well 58, the sleeve member is provided with an upwardly extending internally screw threaded boss 58 which communicates with the end of the well 58 by means of an aperture 62 for a purpose which will presently appear. In its opposite sides, the sleeve member 48 is provided with ports 64 and 65 which communicate through passages 68 and 18 respectively with the channels 48 and 42 and with passages 12 and 14 respectively in the sleeve 48.

The rotatable plug member 52 is provided with a cylindrical portion which has a bearing fit in the well 58 and with a stem portion 18 which extends from the cylindrical portion of the plug member through the aperture 82 and boss 88 when the valve is assembled and carries upon its end projecting above the top 'of the boss 88 a lever 18 secured thereto by suitable means, such as the through pin 88. Preferably, packing 82 is disposed within the hollow boss 68 surrounding a portion of the stem 12, which packing may be compressed by a suitable gland nut 84. On the side of the cylindrical portion opposite the stem 18, the rotatable plug member 52 is provided with a tubular extension 86 from which a well 88 extends into'the plug member to a position adjacent to the location at which the stem I5 joins the cylindrical portion of the plug. Fluid-passages 88 and 82 are provided in the plug member 52 leading from the exterior of the plug member into the well 88. These passages 88 and 82 are so located that in one angular position of the plug member they register with the passages 12 and 14 provided in the sleeve member 48 to provide a fluid passage entirely through the valve from the chan el 48 to the channel 42. In an alternative posit on of the plug member 52, the passages 88 and 82 are moved out of registry with the passages "and 14 so that the plug 82 closes the fluid passage through the valve.

A piston 84 is located in the well or bore 88 and is urged toward the closed end of-the well by means of a coiled compression spring 88 which is inserted at one end into the hollow piston 84 and bears at its opposite end against an abutment 88 retained in the tubular extension 88 by suitable means, such as the tapered through pin I88. As illustrated in Fig. 2, when the piston 84 is in its limiting position under the urge of the spring 86, it lies between the inner ends of the passages 88 and 82 and effectually blocks the passage of fluid through the valve, regardless oi whetheror not the passages 88 and 82 register with the respective passages 12 and 14 in the sleeve 48.

The piston is provided, upon its end facing the bottom of the well 88, with an extension I82 which insures that the end of the piston will always be slightly spaced from the bottom surface of the well. A small auxiliary channel I84 leads fromthe passage 88 on the inlet side of the valve to the space between the end. of the piston and the bottom surface of the well 88 so that pressure of any fluid in the channel 88 may be ex- I erted upon the end of the piston to force the piston toward the abutment 88 against the action of the spring 88. When the pressure of the fluid acting upon the end of the piston is sufllcient, the piston will be moved against the action of the spring to a position in which it is clear of the passages 88 and 82, in which case fluid may flow through the valve from the inlet channel 48 to the outlet channel 42. The piston, however, is not affected in any way by the pressure of the fluid in the propeller or in the channels on the propeller side of the valve.

From the above description, it will be ,observed that by the use of a valve of the character indicated the lubricating oil may be retained in the lubricating system of the engine until the oil at some selected point in the lubricating system from which the valve inlet channel 48 leads has reached a predetermined pressure sumcient to move the piston 84 against the action of the spring 86. This pressure may be so selected that the lubricating requirements of the engine are adequately provided for by the time such pressure is reached. As the pressure increases above this predetermined minimum pressure, the piston 84 will be forced against the action of the spring 88 to a position in which the oil may flow through the valve to the propeller controlling mechanism 24. By this means, the propeller operating mechanism will be effectively prevented from robbing the engine of any necessary lubricating oil when for any reason the pressure in the engine lubricating system is below the predetermined minimzim pressure value for which the spring 88 is se While there has been illustrated and described a particular mechanical embodiment ofv what is now considered to be the preferred form of the idea of the invention, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the particular construction so illustrated anddescribed but that such changes in the size, shape, and arrangement of parts may be resorted to as come within the scope of the appended claimsn What is claimed is:

1. In combination with an engine, a controllable pitch propeller driven thereby, hydraulically actuated control means for said propeller, and

an engine driven pump for supplying oil under 75 answer pressure to the lubricating system of said engine and to thehydraulic control means for said propeller, a manually controllable valve in the oil conduit line between said pump and said propeller control means, and means incorporated in said valve and responsive to the oil pressure in said engine lubricating system for automatically maintaining the oil line to the propeller closed whenever the pressure of the oil in said lubricating system is below a predetermined value.

2. In combination with an engine, a controllable pitch propeller driven by said engine, hydraulically actuated controlling means for said propeller, and an engine driven pump for supplying oil under pressure to the lubricating system of said engine and to the hydraulically actuated controlling means, a manually controllable valve in the oil conduit line between said pump and.

said propeller controlling means, and a piston in said valve, spring urged against the pressure of said oil to a position in which it renders saidvalve inefiective to open the oil conduit line between said pump and said propeller controlling means whenever the pressure of the oil at said valve is below a predetermined minimum value.

3. In combination with an engine, a controllable pitch propeller driven by said engine, hydraulically actuated control means for said propeller, and an engine driven pump to supplying oil under pressure to the lubricating'system of said engine and to the hydraulically actuated control means for said propeller, a valve having a fixed outer portion and a manually operable rotatable inner portion provided with oil passages controlled by movement of said inner. portion ing a manually operable rotatable portion for controlling the supply of fluid to-said propeller, and a pressure responsive portion in said rotatable portion for maintaining said fluid supply cut off whenever the pressure of the fluid-in said lubricating system is below a predetermined value.

5. In combination with an engine having a fluid pressure lubricating system and a controllable pitch propeller driven by said engine and controlled by fluid under pressure from said engine lubricating system, a valve in the fluid line between said engine lubricating system and said propeller comprising a manually operable element having passages for controlling the supply of fluid to said propeller and an internal chamber in line with said passages, and a spring pressed plunger in said chamber for obstructing the flow of fluid through said valve whenever the pressure of the fluid in said lubricating system is below a predetermined value.

6. In combination with an engine having a fluid pressure lubricating system and a controllable pitch propeller driven by said engine" and controlled by fluid under pressure from said engine lubricating system, a valve in the fluid line between said engine and said propeller comprising a manually operable portion for controlling the supply of fluid to said propeller and an automatically actuated portion' responsive to the ANDREW V. D. WILLGOOS. 

